She's Not Lassie

I'd show you a picture of my dog, but like many other things, she's afraid of having her photograph taken. It's not about the flash, either. And it doesn't matter whether it's a Hasselblad, a camera phone, or a throwaway camera. She knows what you're about to do and she wants no part of it.

(I realize I haven't used her name yet. I'm saving that for a full-blown column about her adoption.)

In addition to being part Smooth Collie (meaning she has a short coat rather than a "rough" one as we're used to seeing on Lassie), she's a White Collie, a breed apart and seen/appreciated more in the U.K. than in the U.S. Calvin Coolidge had White Collies as did Queen Victoria, whose dog looks quite similar to my pooch.